This year marks the 17th anniversary of the ITOA, and I am honoured to be appointed as the president of the 8th Executive Committee. The new Executive Committee and I will work together to make positive contributions to the development of both the ITOA and Hong Kong’s tourism industry.

Over the last 20 years, Hong Kong’s return to our Motherland has presented valuable opportunities for the development of the tourism industry in Hong Kong. Ever since the implementation of the Individual Visit Scheme for Mainland tourists in 2003, the number of visitors received by Hong Kong has been increasing continuously with a significant growth in inbound tourism. In 2016, the total number of visitors received by Hong Kong came to 56.70 million. Although the number of intown visitors fell slightly in recent years due to social factors and the surrounding environment and even dropped to a low level during 2015 and 2016, with the proactive support and favourable policies adopted by the government, the number of in-town visitors stabilized and maintained a growth trend in the first half of 2017. With the concerted efforts of the industry peers, I believe that the inbound hospitality operations will develop by leaps and bounds in the near future.

Since its inception, ITOA has been striving to facilitate and contribute to the development of the inbound tourism industry in Hong Kong under the leadership of Mr. Ricky Tse with the help of the Executive Committee. During my tenure, I will adhere to the mission of ITOA and continue to promote our operations together with the new Executive Committee. Hand-in-hand with all our members, we will strengthen the communication and cooperation with our local and overseas peers and work in line with the tourism development policies of the HKSAR government, with a view to turning Hong Kong into a world-class tourist destination.

Hong Kong Inbound Tour Operators Association
Chairman
Mr. Charles Ng